


A Swap to Hide

by rcwiggins



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Emo Morality | Patton Sanders, High School, M/M, Nerd Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Pastel Creativity | Roman Sanders, Prep Logic | Logan Sanders, Prom, Role Reversal, Student Council
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-21
Updated: 2019-12-21
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:13:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21882076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rcwiggins/pseuds/rcwiggins
Relationships: Logic | Logan Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders
Comments: 4
Kudos: 12
Collections: Sanders Sides Secret Santa 2019





	1. Chapter 1

Logan fidgets with the sleeve of his letterman jacket, ready to get out of class for the day. Sure, school is important and he excels at it, but that doesn’t make it fun, or even interesting, really. What he was really waiting for was Drama Club. 

The last few seconds on the clock tick down, slowly creeping to the day’s end. The teacher’s slow voice drones on and on until, finally, the bell rings for the end of the day. Hastily packing up his things, Logan keeps seated in his desk, quickly swiping his hair out of his eyes and pushing up his glasses, waiting for the afternoon announcements to end. 

“Good afternoon, Tigers!” the overly enthusiastic student council member cheered through the intercom, “Our clubs after school today are Roaring Champs, Drama, Chess, and Student Council. Remember that if you are interested in joining the track and field team you need to have a physical on file or turn one in before the first day of conditioning on January 17ᵗʰ. Car riders are dismissed, chess and drama students may head to the media center and auditorium, respectively.”

Jumping out of his seat, Logan tugs his book bag onto his shoulder and walks out of the classroom, keeping one hand in his pocket. The boisterous crowd in the hall seems to part to let him pass. 

“Hey, Logan!” one kid calls, keeping pace with him. He is wearing pastel pinks and blues and his nose is spotted with freckles. Smiling, he continues, “Hey! So, I heard that you’re in the musical again this year? That’s pretty cool! I wanted to join too, but student council keeps me busy most days and all.” His voice is demanding Logan’s attention, but still bright and hushed as they navigate through the sea of teens. 

“Well, it certainly is an accomplishment to be a member of the student council, though I have always believed it to be a popularity contest.” Logan mumbled the last part under his breath as he fidgets with a loose string in his pocket. 

The man nods and grins, sweeping back his hair, “Yeah, it’s pretty cool.” Suddenly looking shocked, the man looks back to Logan, “Oh, shoot, did I not tell you my name yet?” As Logan shakes his head, the man quickly responds, “Roman. Kingston.” he adds on the end. 

“It is- it’s nice to meet you too, Roman.” Logan stumbles over his words as they both near the auditorium, “Are you here for Drama too? I don’t think I’ve seen you here before.”

“Oh, no. The Media Center is just over there-” he points to a door a few meters away, “-so that’s where I’m going.” When Logan reaches the doors of the theater Roman waves back at him, turns, and rushes to the library. With a slight hum, Logan pushes open the door and enters the auditorium, a rush of cool air hitting him like a wave.

The lights had been dimmed to almost nothing as the spotlights were being tested, flickering on and off, changing colors, and dancing around the stage. Actors bustle around the stage, and murmurs of the student actors and stage crew are barely audible from the front of the room. 

Picking up his pace, Logan strides to the stairs that lead to the stage, then walks from there to backstage, his sneakers clacking against the hardwood flooring. “Hey!” someone calls out to him. Looking around backstage, Logan spots a short teen walking up to him dressed in dark, faded blues and greys. Curly brown hair sits in a mop over his eyes as he strides closer to Logan. “You’re Logan?”

“Yes, can I help you?” he responds, tugging at the end of his jacket.

“I just got invited onto stage crew-” the stranger starts explaining, rocking on his heels, “-and I was told that you were the person I should come to with questions.”

“While I appreciate the sentiment of whoever sent you, I should infor- tell you that I am not on the stage crew.”

“Oh, okay. Do you know who I should ask, then?” he questions, head cocked slightly.

“Eden should be over there-” Logan points to him as he turns the mics on to check them, “-I would recommend asking him. He is the head of the stage crew this year. If you would like, I can introduce you to him?”

Perking up at the offer, the student replies, “That would be great! I’m not very good with people, I don’t think.”

Walking the teen over the Eden, Logan responds, “I don’t get that impression from you at all… I’m sorry, what is your name? I don’t think I’ve seen you around here, and-”

“Oh that’s fine,” the student says, shrugging his shoulders, “I keep to myself a lot. It’s Patton Hart.”

“Well, it is nice to meet you, Patton.”

“You too.”


	2. Chapter 2

Peering down at the chessboard, Virgil takes his next move. Picking up his last knight, he pulls the white pawn off the board and puts his piece in its place, keeping his face as neutral as possible. Rolling out his shoulders, he settles back down in his seat. 

“Wow. Just wow.” Joan says, smiling, “You really fell for that? It’s so basic, though?” Swiping their rook down the checkered board, they snatch up the knight, “And with that, bye-bye horsey.”

“And bye-bye king, right?” Virgil says as he moves his bishop over one tile, “Checkmate.”

Scanning the board, Joan groans, “Again! You keep on beating me!”

“What can I say, anxiety always makes you think a few steps ahead.”

“Oh come on, don’t act like that’s the only thing you have going for you. You’re, like, crazy smart! Have you ever gotten anything lower than an A-?”

“If I say yes, will you get off my case?” Virgil crosses his arms with a cheeky grin. 

“Wow.” Joan rolls their eyes as Virgil resets the board. 

“What can I say, I’m just that good.”

“A good pain in my neck, right?”

“Whatever!” As the two finish their banter, the student council members enter the media center and they get back to the game, Joan taking the first move. Resting his head in his hand, Virgil looks to what the council members are doing, listening in on their hushed murmurs.

“When are we going to form the committee for prom? Last year we started too late and it looked like crap and the food was awful!” one of the girls says, leaning back in her chair. 

“Well, do you want to do it, Julia? After all, you can clearly do so much better at finding the theme, the food, the music, a DJ, enough staff supervision, then start making posters, getting good decorations, organizing a date, creating a-”

“Alright! I get it!” she grumbles, leering at the boy who had been talking, “I swear, I should yank out your hearing aid so you can’t keep getting sarcastic with me.”

A third voice pipes in as Virgil moves a pawn down the tiles, “Maybe we can put it to a vote with the student body on the theme and get the art club to help with posters, the banner, and decorations?”

“Hmm, good idea, Leo. We can work with that.” The second voice replies, “And if you really didn’t like the food, Julia, then we can find a different place to cater, but I think most of the students would be upset with that.”

“Shut up, Roman! Nobody likes the Eatery and you know it!” Julia hisses, slamming her fist down on the table.

A fourth voice quietly jokes, “But what about the swing? It reminds me of grandma’s porch.”

“Dominic, shut up.” Leo whispers through giggles, “Don’t make her even more pissed.”

Sending out a knight, Virgil leans forward, staying focused on what the student council is discussing, much like how he can tell Joan is. “We could put it to a vote?” Leo offers, shrugging his shoulders.

“Fine,” Julia mumbles, “All for dropping Enrique's as our caterer during prom say ‘aye’. Aye”

“Aye.” Dominic raises a hand.

“Dom! I thought you loved me!” Leo jokes, nudging his partner’s shoulder.

“All opposed?” Julia continues, ignoring the other two. 

“Aye,” Roman starts, “really don’t like you, Julia.”

“Aye… second that!” Leo laughs.

Scoffing, Julia starts talking again, “Whatever, we tied anyways. If Rosa was here then I would have won!”

“Well, she’s not here and we seem to have survived the wrath of the Dragon Witch again!” Roman waves her off, charm bracelet jingling as he does so. 

Before Julia can start complaining, Dominic puts out a question for the table, “Alright, how do we settle this tie, though?” Leaning back, he fidgets with the pencil in his hand, twirling it through his fingers.

Sitting up, Leo looks around the library, “Let’s ask the Chess Club.”

Peering at the club members, Julia sneers, “Really. Them?” Jabbing a thumb in the general direction of Virgil and Joan, she continues, “I have that one pale kid in Calculus. He’s such a know-it-all.”

Roman glances over to them both before turning back to Julia, “So then he’ll know what the better place to eat at is?” Standing up, he pushes in his chair and makes his way to Virgil. Despite the protests from Julia, he asks, “Would you mind settling something for us?”

“Uh, sure,” Virgil responds, looking the pastel-clad man up and down. 

“Alright, so for prom, Julia and Dominic both want to get a different caterer, but Leo and I like Enrique's Exquisite Eatery and want to keep them as the caterer.” Swiping his hair out of his eyes, Roman continues, “What do you want. Same or different?”

“If I had to choose, I guess Enrique's?”

“Yes!” Roman exclaims, pumping up his fist. Waving back over to the student council table, he calls out, “Told you, Julia!” 


	3. Chapter 3

Peering down from the rafters, Patton moves the spotlight from stage left to right, then up to down, ensuring that it has a full range of motion. Talyn stands close beside him, adjusting the colors and tones of light that it shines. Glancing over at them, Patton wonders if they’ve heard the rumors. What would they think if they have? 

Looking down at the stage, Patton can see some of the cast reading and performing their lines, including Logan. The rest of the actors seem to want to be around him, almost fighting to get a spot next to him. How does he get to be so popular when everyone else just has to suck up to him? It doesn’t seem right. 

“So…” Talyn starts, closing the laptop in front of them, and pushing a hand through their multicolored hair, untangling a small strand, “what made you want to do stage crew?”

“I don’t know. I guess I just needed something to do. Everything else was getting to be too boring at home.” he responds, flicking off the spotlight. 

“That’s fair.” they shrug, looking down at the actors, “Wonder what scene they’re working on?”

“Sometimes.” 

“The only acting I see is how they act like they love Logan.”

“I know, right!” Patton exclaims. Hushing himself a bit, he continues, “I mean, what has he ever even done? Why is he oh-so-popular when there are better people almost everywhere?”

“It’s insane,” Talyn responds, shaking their head, “Who knew that all it took to be a god on earth was being a track star and an actor, right?”

“Yeah. I can’t believe I actually talked to him earlier.”

“You seemed to get along with him, at least.”

“I’m not as bad an actor as I look, Talyn,” Patton shrugs, “besides, getting the ‘cool kid’ mad at me would be a death sentence.”

“I feel that,” Talyn signs, “Remember Julia? Julia Edwards?”

Flinching Patton mumbles, “Yeah, I remember her.”

“God, what a bitch! I can’t even with her most of the time!” Throwing up her hands, they go on, “I mean, she sleeps around so much, doesn’t take no for an answer, talks all through class, and is just the * worst!”

“Yeah, I’ll be happy to never see her again,” Patton says, crossing his arms. His curly hair falls into his eyes as the director calls through both of their headsets.

“Let’s get this show on the road! Sound, check the mics. Lights, set ‘em to dim. Backstage, get the actors into position and props out. We’re gonna run the whole thing with tech today, so we need to get to work.”

Sighing, Talyn dims the lights to the preset and looks over to Patton one more time, “Let’s see how big of a trainwreck this is.”

As the overture begins to play Talyn and Patton both gaze down at the stage, waiting for their cue. Slowly, the music fades into the opening number and Talyn flicks on the spotlight in the direction of upstage right, where “Willy Wonka” would be coming out. Theater really loses the magic when it’s a tech rehearsal. 

Stepping out onto the stage and into the spotlight is none other than Logan, having taken off the letterman jacket and only wearing his jeans, white t-shirt, and sneakers. His dark skin glows in the spotlight. 

Walking towards center stage, he takes a breath, barely audible, even through the speakers, and began singing the opening number. “Come with me, and you’ll be-”

Patton finally understands why people like Logan so much. His voice flows like honey with a strong vibrato that still manages to help the song along and keep it light and airy. It resonates through the auditorium like a choir in a cathedral. 

“Wow,” Talyn breathlessly whispers as the song continues, “I mean… Wow.”

“Can we get less reverb on his mic?” the stage manager, Thomas, asks through the headset. 

“On it,” one of the other members of stage crew respond, lowering the echo from the mic. Patton reaches over to the laptop and slowly starts to raise the lights over the stage, giving the rest of the crew to start setting up the set and props. 

Far sooner than anybody would want the song ends, fading into “The Golden Age of Chocolate”, meaning the Oompa Loompa actors are all stepping out onto the stage. The cutesy, upbeat melody picks up as one of the actors on stage hands Logan a small cane to start twirling as he begins singing again. Although, in Patton’s opinion, this song doesn’t fit the performer’s voice as well it still sounds nice and bright. 

Taking a glance down at the stage again, Patton watches everyone perform with a deeply rooted interest. The hour or so the performance took was all worth it, even as he was preoccupied with the lighting.

As soon as the last note is sung the director waves up to Talyn, the signal to raise the house lights. Nodding, they reach for the laptop and slowly turn them back on. Shouting in a booming voice to project all the way up to the stage, the director calls, “That’s a wrap. I’ll give everyone some notes on Monday, but for now, get your stuff and wait for your ride to show up.”

Laughing, the actors quickly get off the stage, many pulling out their phones to text their ride, others exiting through the doors to get to their cars in the school’s parking lot. After shutting down the laptop and turning off the spotlights Patton and Talyn make their way down from the rafters and to the floor. Once their feet are touching the floor again the two go backstage to drop off the laptop and grab their bags. 

Rolling out their shoulders, Talyn hoists their bag up and onto their back, “Guess I’ll see you again Monday?”

“Yup! Have a nice weekend!” Patton cheerily responds.

“You too,” They nod while walking out onto the stage. Looking startled, they stumble back a step, “Sorry about that.”

“I can assure you it is no problem,” a familiar voice responds. As Talyn hurries off to the parking lot none other than Logan walk backstage, still without his signature jacket. Eyes squinting at the room, he, far too late then someone should, notices Patton. “Oh, hello…” taking a few steps forward, and squinting even more, the man questions, “Patton?”

“Uh… yeah.” Glancing around the room for an out, he continues the conversation, “Why are you squinting so much?”

“Oh, well, you see one of my contact lenses fell out. One stage. I am practically blind without them, so…”

“Ah.” silence settles over the room, far too heavy to be welcome, “Well, I should get going. Bye.” Patton hesitantly waves as he pulls up his bag and exits the stage.

What a weird conversation.


End file.
